Mind Games
by The Phantom
Summary: While his master sleeps, Samwise has a disturbing face-off with the infamous Slinker and Stinker... rather dark, with a taste of schizophrenic madness...


Disclaimer: I own none of the characters within.

Author's Notes: I read an interview with Peter Jackson, in which he spoke of the mind games Gollum plays with Frodo and Sam. This story does not have a set date of occurrence, though it is obviously before Shelob's lair. It's basically a creepy interlude with Gollum and Sam, demonstrating the said mind games… 

Mind Games

It was late at night, and the wind moaned softly like a dying Man, drifting on its' haunted way over hill and dale, slinking and creeping as though it were an enormous wild cat, waiting to pounce on the unsuspecting prey that lurked in the darkness.

While it was night and dark, the darkness was pierced somewhat by the full moon riding overhead, the clouds that were entwined around it appeared as snakes clutching their victim. And yet the moon was still bright enough that creatures hating the light stayed hidden, and creatures cursing the moon would not travel.

Thus, Samwise sat uneasily on this dreadful night, the wind whistling softly in his ears and teasing at his hair. Frodo slept nearby, fitfully, but still deep enough that the disturbing breeze did not reach him. For it was disturbing; Sam sensed something on that wind, something about it that made him uneasy.

Nearby, Gollum crouched and did not move, as though he had been frozen in place by some sorcerer's spell. Inwardly, Sam wished that were true. Wished that Gollum would die, or become injured and unable to continue, that Frodo and his true servant could go on without his terrible presence. Sam distrusted him… something deep in his heart warned against this creature, whether he promised to help or not. And Frodo seemed so blindly attached to him…

And it was Gollum's fault that they lingered dangerously on their journey. He would not travel in anything but the darkest parts of the night, though their pauses in travel became ever more perilous. Still their 'guide' would not go on in the light, even the place luminosity of the sweet full moon.

A low hiss emanated from the thin form crumpled a distance away. And suddenly Gollum's eyes were alight, open and gazing about in the darkness, glowing with that hideous paleness. Slowly, almost imperceptibly, he stretched out his arm, resting it gently on the ground before him. Then he repeated the agonizingly sluggish movement with his opposite leg.

Carefully, silently, Gollum lurched himself forward until his weight was resting almost entirely on the two reached limbs. With the same crawling pace as before, he extended his other arm and leg. The shift came again, and he was one step closer to…

Frodo.

Though Sam had originally intended to fake sleep and see what Gollum was up to, seeing the creature advancing on his master made his head spin. Yet he remained frozen, breathless, hypnotized by the delicate movements of the scrawny form.

Gradually, and after what seemed to be a long stretch of time, the longs arms and legs coiled together and Gollum rested directly next to the Ringbearer. The process had been utterly and absolutely silent, as though a vacuum had swallowed up the ability to hear his progress across the soft earth. 

Heart racing, Sam restrained himself as Gollum reached one slender hand forward and rested it on Frodo's chest, sighing deeply and remaining still in that position. His back was turned to Sam, who took the opportunity to slide his hand to his sword hilt.

"We know you're watching us, Mr. Samwise…"

And suddenly Sam realized those terrible eyes were fixed on him, sparking with a green flame from within and full of calm hysteria. 

"Hey, now." Sam hissed, lest Frodo be awakened. "What are you doing there?"

A smile slid across Gollum's thin lips, and he made an odd purring sound. Hopping lightly over the sleeping Frodo, he landed on the opposite side of him, so that the slumbering Hobbit was between the two that were awake. 

"Nice masssssster…" Gollum murmured softly. "So nice… so nice…"

The long hands were abruptly on Frodo's chest, playing absently with the coat.

"So helplessssss…" he noticed. "We could kill it now…"

Sam gave a strangled moan as those skeletal hands were then loosely around Frodo's neck, the thumbs rubbing patterns on the delicate white throat. 

"Poor nice masssster…" Gollum crooned, his eyes shining with a peculiar madness. "Massssster of the Precious…"

Fumbling with his sword, Sam was about to pull it on the creature when Gollum's grip on his quarry tightened.

"Nassssssty hobbit!" he reprimanded sharply. "Couldn't make it fasssssst enough before we broke the massster's neck, eh, Precious? If he moved, we just might squeeze it to death…"

Now Sam's heart was pounding in his ears. In an attempt to calm the creature, he made a show of lifting his hands from the sword hilt and resting them in his lap, though his fingers itched to fasten themselves around that skinny neck… 

"Smart Hobbit…" Gollum complimented easily.

"Here now…" Hoarsely, Sam tried to negotiate. "What'd you do that to Mr. Frodo for? He's been nothing but kind to you."

"True, Precious, true…" 

Nodding, Gollum released his master, whose tired head fell with a light thump back to the ground, where he still slept, unaware of the face-off happening around him. 

And with a swift movement, Gollum threw himself to the ground in remorse, laying with his arms over his head and hardly moving. Just as quickly as it had happened, he was up in a crouch again.

"Nassssty Hobbit…" he growled dangerously. "What happens if we leave it, Precious? Lost it will be, lost in the darkness… should we leave it, eh? Leave the nasssssty Hobbit?"

The light in those eyes had swelled; now they were almost twin beacons, flashing with a submerged insanity that chilled Sam to the bone. Carefully, he was edging closer to Frodo…

"We leaving you, nassssssty Hobbit!" Gollum suddenly crowed. "Goodbye!"

And then he was gone, the wind whipping away any sounds of his retreat.

"Gollum!" Sam barked after him.

But his voice did not have the authoritative command of Frodo's, and his words went unheeded, the darkness becoming all the more smothering. Quickly, Sam crawled over and sat next to Frodo, his eyes darting around the misty area.

_"Gollum." _

The hiss behind him was barely enough of a warning. Rolling to the side, he turned and saw Gollum with his long fingers clawing at the dirt where he'd been sitting milliseconds ago. As though nothing had happened, Gollum sat back and nonchalantly cleaned his hands, whimpering occasionally.

"What's gotten into you?" Sam panted.

"Scared, is it?" Gollum sneered. 

In a rush, Sam darted towards the creature, who instinctively leapt out of the way to balance back on his haunches a little ways away. The Gamgee immediately placed himself between this mad thing and his master.

"It likes riddles, does it?" Gollum abruptly mused.

"No." Sam answered carefully, but crossly. "I don't like riddles."

"Here's a riddle," Gollum ignored his response. "What have I got in my pocketses?" 

Shuddering, Sam eyed the worm-eaten trousers that hung off of Gollum's emaciated frame, and didn't really care to know what dreadful things the beast had in his pockets.

"I don't care."

"What have I got in my pocketses? Three guesses, Precious, only three. String or nothing! Ach! Ach! The Precious! Nassssssty little Bagginses… nasssssty little thief… Bagginssssss… we hates it forever…"

Guts lurching, Sam watched as Gollum tore up the earth, his eyes burning with rage and fury at some unknown foe. But then the hateful gaze turned to Frodo, and with a blind lunge Gollum threw himself towards the sleeping Hobbit. 

At once Sam used his body to block the attack, and the two rolled in the dirt, scuffling madly. Four times Sam felt those long hands begin to close around his throat, and each time he threw them off. At last, he flipped Gollum off his back and the thin creature skidded to a halt in the dust.

"Nasssssty Hobbit!" he shrieked.

"Get away!" Sam ordered angrily. "Stay away from me, you wretch! And stay away from my master!"

"Our masssster too, fool…" Gollum snarled, his voice suddenly cold and shattering. "Fool…"

Uneasy silence descended on the two, eyes burning into each other and neither twitching a muscle. The wind picked up its' pace, ripping across the land and tearing at their hair, making their eyes water. Sam blinked once. 

The cold of the earth slid into his bones, freezing his heart and clawing at his mind. And yet still Sam did not break the eye contact. For a moment, Gollum wavered, his eyes flickering. Then the cold light filled them again and he continued to stare.

Fire was pouring from their gazes, an electricity so powerful that anyone passing between them would surely have been killed by the force of their thoughts, hatred and distrust reverberating on the air around them. Sam began to fell strangely light-headed, as though Gollum was somehow draining his strength simply with those vicious eyes…

Somewhere in the distance, some foul creature raised a howling roar to the sky, and it shattered the concentration. Shaking his head, Sam took a shuddering breath. 

Suddenly Gollum was crawling towards the Hobbit on all fours, his head low and whimpering softly.

"Poor little Hobbitses!" he moaned. "Smeagol promised, Smeagol will lead… trusssst Smeagol…"

Cautiously, Sam nodded, unsure of what else he could do. 

Once the affirmative had been given, Gollum sprang into the air and pranced around like a contented dog. If he'd had a tail, it would have been wagging. In the midst of his giddy babble, he suddenly hissed in a completely different voice,

"We'll kill it!"

And then he threw himself to the ground, on his side, curled up like a dozing spider, and was asleep.

For hours Sam watched him, and when Frodo at last awoke the darkness was thick enough for them to travel once more. Waking, Gollum happily led the way, trotting ahead eagerly.

Glancing back over his bony shoulder, he shot Sam a chilling look. There was murder in his eyes and madness written on his face… and then it was gone, and he continued to lead the way to the dark land.

Only then did Sam realize he was trembling from head to foot.

~ The End


End file.
